Car-coupling



I 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.. H. L. RENNE.

CAR GOUPLING..

(No. Model.)

Patented Apr. 2

UNITED STATES ATENT ruce.

HORACE L. RENNE, OF HAMMOND, INDIANA.

CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 536,894, dated April 2, 1895.

Application filed May 20,1893. Renewed September 18, 1894. Serial No. 523,348. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

1 3e it known that I, HORACE L.- RENNE, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Hammond, in the county of Cass and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car-Couplin gs; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, wh ch will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, and in which- Figure l is a perspective View of the front end ofa box car equipped with my improved coupling. Fig. 2 is a side elevation showing the front ends of two cars, equipped with my improved coupling, coming together for coupling; one of the buffers on the ear to the right having been broken away, the better to illustrate the construction of the coupling per se. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of a box car equipped with my improved couplingn- Fig. 4 is a detail view in perspective, of the drawhead and drawbar (which form essential parts of my improved coupling) removed from the car. Fig. 5 is a perspective detail view of my link or coupling device. Fig. 6 isa similar View of a couplingdevice of a somewhat modified construction, to facilitate its use with cars provided with the ordinary pinand-link coupling. Fig. 7 is a perspective detail view of the bifurcated, link-guide; and Fig. 8 is a detail view of the catch or lockingdevice for holding the side coupling-lever in its down position, to lift and maintain the link out of engagement with the drawhead.

Like letters of reference denote corresponding parts in all figures.

This invention relates to automatic car couplings of the particular type employing a link or connecting device in the nature of a short bar having a crosshead or T at each end, adapted to engage and interlock with drawheads of peculiar construction; and my improvement consists in the novel and specific construction and combination of parts of a coupler of that class as will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed; the object of my said improvement being to produce an automatic coupler of sufficient strength and durability to adapt it for use on freight cars as well as on passenger coaches, and yet so inexpensive that it may be used profitably on coal and freight cars, which are still for the greater part (especially on Western roads) equipped with the old-fashioned, dangerous and obsolete pin-and-link couplings.

Referring to the drawings, the letters A A denote the front ends of two box cars supposed to stand on the same track and ready to be coupled together.

As the coupling devices are the same on both cars, one being an exact duplication of the other, it will be necessary only to describe the devices appertaining to one of the cars, and these are: the drawhead B and drawbar C, preferably made in one piece, and the latter inserted through a coiled spring, D, as usual, placed beneath the floor of the platform and car, and between the side-sills of the car-body, in the usual well-known way. The projecting front end of the drawhead B is bifurcated so as to form a recess E, the sides of which are formed by stout hooks, F F, the points ff of which are bent rearwardly, so as to overlap the T head of the link when the'latter is in operative or' coupled position. At this point it may be as well to describe the link or coupling device proper which, in its usual form as illustrated in Fig. 5, is really not a link at all, in the usual acceptation of the term, but a short bar G, the middle part of which, on both sides, is grooved or recessed transversely, as shown at g, to receive two short arms, H H, connected rigidly to each other and to the bar G by a transverse bolt h, and connected at the top by a bolt or crosshead 1', thus forming an oblong link, at right angles to and connected rigidly with, bar G, for the attachment of the chain I by which the link is operated.

At each end of bar G is a short crosshead J, of such length that it will span the opening or recess E in the drawhead, opposite ends of the crossheads being grasped (when the device is in its operative or coupled position) by the rearwardly curved coupling hooks E F. The bar is suspended by the chain I from an arm K, which projects at right angles from a rod, L, working in staples or bearings, ll, fastened in the front side of the car, in such a manner that this rod L not only may be turned in its bearings Z Z, but it can he slid sidewise by pushing or pulling upon its lever handle L. To the outer end of arm K is also attached a chain, 1', which extends up to the roof of the car where it may be fastened in a hooked standard M. When chain I is so fastened, it will sustain arm K in the position shown in Fig. l,lifting the coupling-bar clear off the drawhead, but in alignment therewith.

Then it is desired to throw the coupling bar entirely out of the way on one car, so as to permit its drawhead to engage the coupling'bar appertaining to the car opposite (each car being provided, at each coupling, with a coupling-bar or link, but only one of these being in use between two cars), the rod L s turned by its handle L so as to bring arm K up against the front side of the car, thus raising the coup ling-barclearoif the buffers; and by now pushing rod Lendwise in its bearings, the couplingbar, suspended by chain I from arm K, will be carried with said arm sidewise, out of the way of the drawhead, in which position (shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3) it may be maintained by pushing the lower end of lever L into the keeper N, which consists of a curved leafspring located on one side of the buffer and adapted to grasp and engage, by friction, the lower end of lever handle. (See Fig.8.) By this operation, the coupling-bar is raised and carried to one side, so as to leave the entrance to the drawhead perfectly clear and unobstructed, so that the coupling-bar appertaining to the opposite car may enter and effect the coupling.

\Vhen it is desired to return the coupling bar to its normal position in the drawhead, lever L is released from its lock or keeper N, rod L is pulled back in its bearings Z Z till the coupling-bar comes just above the drawhead, in the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1; and by now grasping the chain 1, secured to standard M, the coupling bar G can be lowered down into the hooked drawhead. It is guided into this position by the converging and depending arms 0 of the link-guide O; the crosshead J of the coupling-bar entering from above the space between the parallel sides 0 of the guide, as illustrated in the detail View Fig.7; and, as it is lowered into the seat formed by the curved hooks E F, the depending and converging front sides 0 0 of the guide will prevent the crossheadJ from swinging out, so that it may be readily dropped into its seat.

In order to couple the cars, the link orcoupling-bar is held, by arm K and chains I and I, in the raised position, in alignment with the drawhead, shown in Fig. l, and when the cars come together, it is lowered, through the guides O O of both cars, until its T heads engage the hooked drawheads of both cars below the guides. To again uncouple the cars, all that is necessary is to turn lever L down so asto disengage the T heads of the coupling-bar from their respective hooked drawheads, and then push the rod L to one side, as already described.

If desired, the coupling bar may be constructed as shown in Fig. 6, in which I have shown bar G as having a crosshead J at one end only, and an ordinary link J, at the other end. This form of link is intended for use when a car equipped with my improved coupling is to be used with cars of the ordinary pin-and-link coupling, one of these links be ing carried with each car provided with my improved coupling.

Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States The combination, in a car coupling, of the bifurcated drawhead having hooks E F, guide 0 having depending arms 0 0 converging at their lower ends above the curved ends ff of the drawhead-hooks, coupling bar G having cross-heads J J and central rigid link or staple II i, chain I, sliding rod L having arm K and lever handle L, chain I, hooked standard M, and keeper N; all constructed and combined to operate substantially as and for the purpose shown and set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereunto affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HORACE L. RENNE.

,Witnesses:

JOHN JUNE, CoY W. HENDRYX. 

